Ordinary People / Extraordinary Boldness
Acts 4:1-12
And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.
On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what name did you do this?” Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, If we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.
On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what name did you do this?” Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, If we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
The scene is almost cinematic. Two fishermen from Galilee stand in the center of a semicircle, surrounded by the most powerful religious leaders in Judaism. The Sanhedrin, seventy members along with the High Priest, has assembled in full force. Annas is there, the puppet master who controlled the high priesthood through his sons and son-in-law. Caiaphas is there too, the same man who presided over Jesus' trial just weeks earlier. The scribes, the elders, the ruling aristocracy have all gathered to deal with these followers of the executed Nazarene.
Peter and John have no lawyers, no political connections, no formal education in the rabbinic schools. By every measure that matters to this court, they are nobodies. And yet what happens next will reshape our understanding of what it means to witness for Christ in a hostile world.
This confrontation in Acts 4:1-22 marks the first direct clash between the early church and the religious establishment. It sets the pattern for everything that follows. The church will face opposition. The powers of this world will try to silence the gospel. And ordinary believers, filled with the Spirit, will display a boldness that confounds their accusers.
The trouble started the day before. Peter and John had gone to the temple at the hour of prayer and encountered a man who had been lame from birth. He was over forty years old and had spent his entire life begging at the temple gate. When he asked for money, Peter gave him something better. "Silver or gold I do not have," Peter said, "but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." And the man did. He jumped to his feet, walked into the temple courts, and began leaping and praising God. A crowd gathered. Peter seized the moment to preach. He explained that this healing came through faith in Jesus, the one they had handed over to be killed, the one God raised from the dead. By the end of the day, the number of men who believed had grown to about five thousand.
This is what alarmed the authorities. Luke tells us they were "greatly disturbed" because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. The Greek word here (διαπονούμενοι) indicates visceral agitation, not mild annoyance. The Sadducees, who controlled the temple and rejected the doctrine of resurrection, found this particularly offensive. The apostles were not only teaching without authorization. They were validating the very doctrine the Sadducees denied, and they were doing it by pointing to Jesus as proof that resurrection actually happens. So they arrested Peter and John, held them overnight, and convened the Sanhedrin the next morning. The question they posed was a trap: "By what power or what name did you do this?" They wanted to know who authorized these men to teach. If Peter claimed his own authority, he could be dismissed as a pretender. If he named Jesus, he could be charged with promoting a condemned criminal.
But Peter had been with Jesus. And the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead now filled his witness.
Luke's description is precise: "Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them." This is not a new filling but the ongoing reality of Pentecost activated for this moment. Jesus had promised exactly this in Luke 12: "When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what you should say." Acts 4 is the fulfillment. The same Peter who denied Jesus three times before a servant girl now stands before the supreme court and speaks with extraordinary confidence.
Peter begins by reframing the issue. "If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed..." The irony is sharp. The religious establishment is putting men on trial for healing. They are prosecuting a good deed. Peter exposes the absurdity of their position before he even answers their question.
Then he answers it directly. "It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed." No evasion. No apology. Peter names the name, issues the indictment, and announces the resurrection in a single breath. The contrast is stark: you crucified, God raised. Human verdict versus the Lord's verdict. The Sanhedrin condemned Jesus as a blasphemer. God vindicated him as the Messiah.
Peter then reaches for Scripture, quoting Psalm 118:22. "Jesus is the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone." This text Jesus himself had applied to his own rejection. Peter now turns it directly on the Sanhedrin. They are the builders entrusted with constructing God's house. And they have rejected the most essential stone. They examined Jesus and declared him worthless. But God retrieved that stone and made it the cornerstone of everything.
Then comes the climax. Verse 12 contains perhaps the most exclusive claim in all of Scripture: "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved." The Greek construction uses a double negative for emphasis. There is absolutely no other. Not one option among many. The only option. And this is not merely Peter's opinion. The word "must" (δεῖ) indicates necessity in God's plan. Salvation in Jesus is not a suggestion. It is the way things are.
This claim sounds narrow to modern ears. We live in a culture that celebrates religious pluralism and views exclusive truth claims with suspicion. But consider what Peter is actually saying. He is not claiming superiority for himself or his religious tradition. He is announcing that there is actual salvation available in an actual person. If someone is drowning and you know where the life preserver is, pointing to it is not arrogance. It is urgent love. Peter stands before the supreme religious authority of his people and tells them their entire system cannot save them. Only Jesus can.
Luke says the Sanhedrin was astonished when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and realized these were unschooled, ordinary men. In Greek democracy, the word boldness referred to the right of citizens to speak freely in the public assembly. It denotes confidence, openness, freedom of speech. The Sanhedrin expected cowering submission or theological incoherence from these Galilean fishermen. They got neither. And they noticed something else. "They took note that these men had been with Jesus." This observation explains everything. The boldness did not come from natural temperament or rhetorical training. It came from having been with Jesus. The mark was unmistakable.
Meanwhile, the healed man was standing right there. The Sanhedrin could see him. They could not deny the miracle. In their private deliberation, they admitted as much: "Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it." They acknowledged the facts but refused the implications. Their strategy was suppression. Since they could not refute the message, they would forbid its proclamation.
When they commanded Peter and John to stop speaking in the name of Jesus, the apostles' response established a principle the church has followed ever since. "Which is right in God's eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."
Notice the language. Peter does not say "we will not stop" but "we cannot." This is not defiance for its own sake. It is the overflow of encounter. Those who have truly seen and heard cannot remain silent. Just as the Sanhedrin "cannot deny" the miracle, the apostles "cannot help speaking." Both are dealing with undeniable realities. The difference is that one group suppresses the truth while the other proclaims it.
The confrontation ends in stalemate. The authorities issue more threats but release the apostles. They cannot find grounds for punishment because the people are praising God.
This passage confronts us with essential questions. Do we have the kind of encounter with Christ that makes witness overflow rather than obligation? When we face our own "Sanhedrin moments," those times when faithfulness puts us at odds with the powers around us, will we display the boldness that comes from having been with Jesus?
The Sanhedrin had education, position, authority, and enforcement power. Peter and John had none of these. But they had been with Jesus. And that made all the difference.
The question for us is not whether we possess natural boldness. The question is whether we have been with Jesus. Because those who have truly encountered him bear his mark. And those who bear his mark find they simply cannot stop talking about what they have seen and heard. This is the witness the world cannot silence. This is the church the gates of hell cannot overcome.
Peter and John have no lawyers, no political connections, no formal education in the rabbinic schools. By every measure that matters to this court, they are nobodies. And yet what happens next will reshape our understanding of what it means to witness for Christ in a hostile world.
This confrontation in Acts 4:1-22 marks the first direct clash between the early church and the religious establishment. It sets the pattern for everything that follows. The church will face opposition. The powers of this world will try to silence the gospel. And ordinary believers, filled with the Spirit, will display a boldness that confounds their accusers.
The trouble started the day before. Peter and John had gone to the temple at the hour of prayer and encountered a man who had been lame from birth. He was over forty years old and had spent his entire life begging at the temple gate. When he asked for money, Peter gave him something better. "Silver or gold I do not have," Peter said, "but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." And the man did. He jumped to his feet, walked into the temple courts, and began leaping and praising God. A crowd gathered. Peter seized the moment to preach. He explained that this healing came through faith in Jesus, the one they had handed over to be killed, the one God raised from the dead. By the end of the day, the number of men who believed had grown to about five thousand.
This is what alarmed the authorities. Luke tells us they were "greatly disturbed" because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. The Greek word here (διαπονούμενοι) indicates visceral agitation, not mild annoyance. The Sadducees, who controlled the temple and rejected the doctrine of resurrection, found this particularly offensive. The apostles were not only teaching without authorization. They were validating the very doctrine the Sadducees denied, and they were doing it by pointing to Jesus as proof that resurrection actually happens. So they arrested Peter and John, held them overnight, and convened the Sanhedrin the next morning. The question they posed was a trap: "By what power or what name did you do this?" They wanted to know who authorized these men to teach. If Peter claimed his own authority, he could be dismissed as a pretender. If he named Jesus, he could be charged with promoting a condemned criminal.
But Peter had been with Jesus. And the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead now filled his witness.
Luke's description is precise: "Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them." This is not a new filling but the ongoing reality of Pentecost activated for this moment. Jesus had promised exactly this in Luke 12: "When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what you should say." Acts 4 is the fulfillment. The same Peter who denied Jesus three times before a servant girl now stands before the supreme court and speaks with extraordinary confidence.
Peter begins by reframing the issue. "If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed..." The irony is sharp. The religious establishment is putting men on trial for healing. They are prosecuting a good deed. Peter exposes the absurdity of their position before he even answers their question.
Then he answers it directly. "It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed." No evasion. No apology. Peter names the name, issues the indictment, and announces the resurrection in a single breath. The contrast is stark: you crucified, God raised. Human verdict versus the Lord's verdict. The Sanhedrin condemned Jesus as a blasphemer. God vindicated him as the Messiah.
Peter then reaches for Scripture, quoting Psalm 118:22. "Jesus is the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone." This text Jesus himself had applied to his own rejection. Peter now turns it directly on the Sanhedrin. They are the builders entrusted with constructing God's house. And they have rejected the most essential stone. They examined Jesus and declared him worthless. But God retrieved that stone and made it the cornerstone of everything.
Then comes the climax. Verse 12 contains perhaps the most exclusive claim in all of Scripture: "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved." The Greek construction uses a double negative for emphasis. There is absolutely no other. Not one option among many. The only option. And this is not merely Peter's opinion. The word "must" (δεῖ) indicates necessity in God's plan. Salvation in Jesus is not a suggestion. It is the way things are.
This claim sounds narrow to modern ears. We live in a culture that celebrates religious pluralism and views exclusive truth claims with suspicion. But consider what Peter is actually saying. He is not claiming superiority for himself or his religious tradition. He is announcing that there is actual salvation available in an actual person. If someone is drowning and you know where the life preserver is, pointing to it is not arrogance. It is urgent love. Peter stands before the supreme religious authority of his people and tells them their entire system cannot save them. Only Jesus can.
Luke says the Sanhedrin was astonished when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and realized these were unschooled, ordinary men. In Greek democracy, the word boldness referred to the right of citizens to speak freely in the public assembly. It denotes confidence, openness, freedom of speech. The Sanhedrin expected cowering submission or theological incoherence from these Galilean fishermen. They got neither. And they noticed something else. "They took note that these men had been with Jesus." This observation explains everything. The boldness did not come from natural temperament or rhetorical training. It came from having been with Jesus. The mark was unmistakable.
Meanwhile, the healed man was standing right there. The Sanhedrin could see him. They could not deny the miracle. In their private deliberation, they admitted as much: "Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it." They acknowledged the facts but refused the implications. Their strategy was suppression. Since they could not refute the message, they would forbid its proclamation.
When they commanded Peter and John to stop speaking in the name of Jesus, the apostles' response established a principle the church has followed ever since. "Which is right in God's eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."
Notice the language. Peter does not say "we will not stop" but "we cannot." This is not defiance for its own sake. It is the overflow of encounter. Those who have truly seen and heard cannot remain silent. Just as the Sanhedrin "cannot deny" the miracle, the apostles "cannot help speaking." Both are dealing with undeniable realities. The difference is that one group suppresses the truth while the other proclaims it.
The confrontation ends in stalemate. The authorities issue more threats but release the apostles. They cannot find grounds for punishment because the people are praising God.
This passage confronts us with essential questions. Do we have the kind of encounter with Christ that makes witness overflow rather than obligation? When we face our own "Sanhedrin moments," those times when faithfulness puts us at odds with the powers around us, will we display the boldness that comes from having been with Jesus?
The Sanhedrin had education, position, authority, and enforcement power. Peter and John had none of these. But they had been with Jesus. And that made all the difference.
The question for us is not whether we possess natural boldness. The question is whether we have been with Jesus. Because those who have truly encountered him bear his mark. And those who bear his mark find they simply cannot stop talking about what they have seen and heard. This is the witness the world cannot silence. This is the church the gates of hell cannot overcome.
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